Job Cuts In Research On Horizon At Searle

January 11, 1986|By Michael L. Millenson.

Monsanto Co. said some job cuts are likely in its Skokie-based G.D. Searle & Co. unit as a result of overlap in the two firms` operations.

Spokesmen for Searle and Monsanto, the St. Louis-based chemical giant that acquired Searle last October, said Thursday that the extent of the cuts is not yet clear. Mainly affected will be research and development programs that overlap or are not part of the priority areas, such as cardiovascular drugs, that the company has decided to pursue, the spokesmen said.

The cuts are expected to be announced by the end of the month.

``Two big organizations overlap,`` a Monsanto spokesman said. ``One of the things that made Searle attractive is that they were working on the same kinds of areas in which we were interested.``

After its acquisition by Monsanto, Searle sold its consumer products group, consisting of over-the-counter medications, to Procter & Gamble Co. The remaining operations were divided into two Monsanto subsidiaries: NutraSweet Corp., which sells the artificial sweetener aspartame, and G.D. Searle & Co., which includes pharmaceutical sales and research.

Richard J. Mahoney, chairman and chief executive officer of Monsanto, said he has conducted several interviews in search of a new chief executive for Searle but that no decision has been made. John Robson, chief operating officer of Searle before the acquisition, had served as interim chief executive and is leaving at the end of January.

The Searle operation has about 8,500 manufacturing and research employees worldwide and ``about 100`` corporate staff, a Searle spokesman said.

He said the various divestitures since the acquisition have resulted in about 135 jobs being eliminated.

Monsanto has said previously it expects to have a one-time charge against its fourth-quarter 1985 earnings of about $320 million due to a restructuring program stemming from its $2.8 billion acquisition of Searle. That restructuring includes sales of a number of assets, such as chemical plants, as well as an early-retirement program.